Free FAA CFI Helicopter Practice Test

Before taking a student into a confined area, the instructor should teach a performance check confirming:

• A. that at least half fuel remains.
• B. that the helicopter can hover in ground effect at the departure airport.
• C. that power available supports hover out of ground effect (HOGE) at the area's density altitude and the helicopter's weight. ✓
• D. that the wind is calm at the destination.

Confined areas demand OGE performance: steep approaches, vertical departures, no ground cushion. A helicopter that hovers IGE but not OGE will settle exactly where there is no room to recover: run the HOGE numbers before committing.

Reference: FAA-H-8083-21B ch. 7, ch. 10

The recovery from an uncommanded right yaw (LTE) that a student should learn is:

• A. close the throttle and enter autorotation immediately in every case.
• B. aft cyclic and maximum collective.
• C. full left pedal with forward cyclic to gain airspeed, reducing power if altitude permits. ✓
• D. full right pedal to fly with the yaw.

Pedal opposes the yaw, airspeed restores tail rotor effectiveness, and less power means less torque to fight. Autorotation is the last resort if the rotation cannot be stopped, not the first response to the first swing of the nose.

Reference: FAA-H-8083-21B ch. 11; AC 90-95

Loss of tail rotor effectiveness (LTE) in a counterclockwise-rotor helicopter presents as:

• A. an uncommanded, rapidly accelerating right yaw at low airspeed that is not caused by a mechanical failure. ✓
• B. a left yaw at cruise speed.
• C. a vertical vibration through the pedals.
• D. a mechanical failure of the tail rotor drive shaft.

LTE is aerodynamic, not mechanical: the tail rotor is working but cannot deliver the thrust the moment demands, typically below ETL with high power. Students who think 'tail rotor failure' apply the wrong emergency procedure.

Reference: FAA-H-8083-21B ch. 11; AC 90-95

Why is a degree of aft cyclic normally part of the autorotation entry from cruise flight?

• A. it reduces the rate of descent to zero.
• B. it compensates for the right yaw of the entry.
• C. it starts the landing flare early.
• D. it keeps the disc loaded so rotor RPM is preserved, and prevents the nose-low acceleration that follows the collective reduction. ✓

Dumping the collective at cruise speed unloads the rotor and drops the nose; RPM sags exactly when it is most needed. A measured aft cyclic input holds the load on the disc while the autorotation attitude is set.

Reference: FAA-H-8083-21B ch. 11

Before a student pilot's solo cross-country flight in a helicopter, the instructor must provide:

• A. only a verbal authorization if the route is under 50 NM.
• B. an endorsement from a second instructor as a cross-check.
• C. a single endorsement covering all future cross-country flights.
• D. a one-time cross-country training endorsement plus a separate endorsement for each solo cross-country after reviewing that flight's planning. ✓

Two layers: the general endorsement certifying cross-country training, and the per-flight endorsement after reviewing the day's planning, weather, and route. The per-flight review is where the instructor catches the route through the TFR or the fuel plan that does not close.

Reference: 14 CFR 61.93